Is it better to cut ends after goal length has been achieved or before growing out?

[divinedobbie]

Hi everyone,

I'm new here and I have a question that I hope you guys will be able to answer since this has been bothering me for a long time!

I went to a salon and asked the hairdresser to blend my hair with my new semi-permanent extensions (which I don't recommend anyone ever gets, but that's another rant). She dutifully picked up a razor and did as I asked and it looked decent. Well I took the extensions out...and my hair is a mess! The sides are totally lopsided, the left is kind of gradually layered but the right goes from short hair piece immediately to long hair pieces, and the left is longer than the right. The last 5/6 inches of my hair are so "layered" its as if there are only wisps on the end. In fact, my hair has a circumference of 1/2", six inches from the bottom! (My normal circumference is about 2.5" so my hair is thin overall).

It's been 6 months since and I'm still debating whether to cut off the ends and even it out. I'm very, very attached to my hair and if I cut it I'll feel as if I lost all progress but on the other hand I can barely stand looking at it anymore. Not to mention, my hair grows slowly and every hair dresser I go to for trims ignores my pleas of not cutting too much and wacks it off to shoulder length justifying "damaged ends".

Here is my hair: (Please excuse the greasiness, I'm stretching washes)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/77825012@N04/12060076303/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/77825012@N04/12060080043/

So is it better to cut hair off first then focus on growing, or let it grow as is and when I achieve my desired length shape it up?

[arr]

Are your ends damaged, split? If they are too damaged, it might cause more damage up the hair shaft and you might need to trim. If they are not damaged, then there's no need to trim them. A lot of it depends on whats most important to you at the moment-length or even ends. Im kind of in the same boat right now and since my ends aren't damaged, just uneven, I've opted not to trim for the time being because it gives me more length for doing updos. Keeping it up really helps because you dont have to look at your ends as much.

[Anje]

With my hair at least, it's best to trim the ends back every so often, or the sprinter hairs get WAY ahead of the bulk of my hair, and the whole effect is thinned out. I think many people experience this, and find that they have damage on the ends that needs to be trimmed off from time to time when they're growing their hair.

Given your pictures, I'd trim. Not a lot, but an inch or two would make a difference in the thickness of the ends and would only set you back a couple months in growth. But if you don't have damage, it's definitely your prerogative.

Have you ever considered trimming your own ends? A lot of us longhairs do, and it neatly avoids the whole "hairdresser took more than I wanted" problem. Feye's self trim (http://feyeselftrim.livejournal.com/) is a good set of instructions for basic compact cuts on yourself. Just get a pair of sharp, dedicated hair scissors and make sure they don't get used on anything else.

[AmyBeth]

It also might depend on your end goals. Do you want fairytale ends or blunt? Long layers? A thread which might help you figure out your best course to the end goal might be microtrimming and maintaining. Self trimming is such a blessing! You are in control, and never at the mercy of anyone else's sensibilities. Hair dressers want to help, and try to listen, but only you know exactly what you want (when you decide what you want, of course!:).
While I was growing out my hair from a heavily layered BSL, I chose to microtrim on my way to HL. I so understand not wanting to sacrifice any more length than absolutely necessary. I'm going for a modified fairytale hemline. I don't want completely blunt ends, but I don't want any fairytale ends which look tattered and uncared for. There's no hurry- you can't speed up the growth very much, and even if you cut the thin ends off, it will grow back soon.

[pri108]

Hi everyone,

I'm new here and I have a question that I hope you guys will be able to answer since this has been bothering me for a long time!

I went to a salon and asked the hairdresser to blend my hair with my new semi-permanent extensions (which I don't recommend anyone ever gets, but that's another rant). She dutifully picked up a razor and did as I asked and it looked decent. Well I took the extensions out...and my hair is a mess! The sides are totally lopsided, the left is kind of gradually layered but the right goes from short hair piece immediately to long hair pieces, and the left is longer than the right. The last 5/6 inches of my hair are so "layered" its as if there are only wisps on the end. In fact, my hair has a circumference of 1/2", six inches from the bottom! (My normal circumference is about 2.5" so my hair is thin overall).

It's been 6 months since and I'm still debating whether to cut off the ends and even it out. I'm very, very attached to my hair and if I cut it I'll feel as if I lost all progress but on the other hand I can barely stand looking at it anymore. Not to mention, my hair grows slowly and every hair dresser I go to for trims ignores my pleas of not cutting too much and wacks it off to shoulder length justifying "damaged ends".

Here is my hair: (Please excuse the greasiness, I'm stretching washes)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/77825012@N04/12060076303/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/77825012@N04/12060080043/

So is it better to cut hair off first then focus on growing, or let it grow as is and when I achieve my desired length shape it up?

Dear divinedobbie,

I would suggest you keep trimming your hair little bit at a time. just enough that you get rid of split ends and keep it looking leveled so it does not make you unhappy. also a little trim boosts hair growth. making the decision to stop going to hairdressers 4 years ago was probably the best decision i made for the same reason as yours. if you can manage to cut your hair yourself. do that.

When my hair was lifeless, dry and split i did the following:
I started using oils, - almond, coconut, sesame, avocado, amla whatever you can find. I experiment with oils. i bought sesame yesterday before that i was using coconut nad before that some asian oil i found at the asian store.
i started eating healthy food (growth will only come from what you eat)- vegetables, fruits, pulses. Milk and egg help with hair growth, and fish makes it shiny.
i quit hair dryer, hair colour, hair brush and any other form of chemicals. Right now (and since 4 years) I only use shampoo for wash and oils for conditioning.
smoking also damages my hair.


4 years ago i was shocked seeing my hair and it has been a slow and painful journey to grow out all the damaged hair. so i would recommend you to do all of the above. i promise that you will see a huge difference in your hair.

Good luck

[ErinLeigh]

I trim to what looks good now but that is just me. I want to enjoy every stage of hair growth, not just the destination goal length.
As much I would would desire to keep length, I do not want to do it in a way that makes me unhappy whenever i look at my hair. My intention is to have the best hair possible every day, not a year from now if that makes sense. I think it comes down to personality type. Some have patience to put it up and ignore it and let things catch up, I like to wear mine down when going out so I need something that works today, as well as in the future.

I guess the answer will depend on how you plan to wear the hair now. Will you be keeping it up or wearing it down mostly?
EDIT: a reason I can think of to trim thin ends for me is breakage. My hair breaks more when thinned out, it doesn't have the protection of the group of hair around it from strength as a unit. The wispy ends seem to want to snap easier no matter how healthy they are.

[CurlMonster]

I would recommend micro trimming or regularly dusting your ends. This is what I am doing and I have seen great progress with it. It means you don't have to lose length, you just maintain and the thickness travels down. :)

[GoddesJourney]

If you hate it you should cut just some of the damage off and trim small trims along the way. Pick how much you would love to be rid of and then only cut off half of that amount. I agree with the others who suggested learning to self trim. Personally, I need that control over how much hair I'm losing.

[Tigermama]

It's the age old question. I had dyed hair that was damaged, and I chose to keep it because it was long. I cut all my growth for three years. The hair was unruly, frizzed out, and labor intensive, but it was my hair. Some people would prefer short healthy hair. It's a personal preference.

[juliaxena]

Honestly, I don't see why you woupd put up with uneven ends that you don't like for so long. If you are going to cut them either way, you might as well do it now. The time you will need will be the same. Plus I think if someone doesn't do trims, evening and thickening things up at the end makes you lose more length.

[Avital88]

i agree w a cut or microtrimming, youre ends are quite thin and for me it always means slower growth when the ends are damaged but if you are really attached to it just benign neglect until summer and then see again.

[Wildcat Diva]

It depends what your goals are. If I was going to do a wear your hair up for a year challenge for instance, you might need those ends for help with bunning. I would consider bunning it for a long time so you can gain length, if that's what you want in the end. You can always trim later.

I plan on using my (slightly sun and heat damaged) ends to help me keep bunning so I can keep growing. Later I'll trim... Like an inch a year. Plan is to gain five inches each year and take one inch off. I'm liking my hair down now, but honestly, I don't wear it down for more than half a day on wash day. Hardly anyone even sees it. If your routine is like this, you can keep it up and keep on growing. It's gonna take time though, a lot of time! That's just the real deal.

[Islandgrrl]

Partly it depends on how you plan to wear your hair while it's growing. If you plan to wear it down a lot (which I do not recommend), a good trim to even things up and regular dustings would probably be the path I would choose. If you are planning on wearing it up, you need the length for the updos. In that case I would probably do regular but infrequent micro trims to gain enough length so that you can trim to even thins up at a later time. The other thing you do have to consider is the degree of damage you have. Others above have addressed those issues and I can't really add anything useful to what has already been said.

I agree with Wildcat Diva...put it up and forget about it!

[restless]

So is it better to cut hair off first then focus on growing, or let it grow as is and when I achieve my desired length shape it up?

Well, I can only speak for myself and my story goes like this; when I started growing my hair it was dyed and damaged and the ends were very thin due to heat abuse and layers. A lot of people probably wouldve said "cut it and start fresh" but I chose to keep it because I was very attached to my hair and also because I didnt want to go through the awkward lenght stages again. Little by little have I been trimming my hair over the years (say a centimeter or two every now and then) and slowly but surely has the quality and hemline improved. My very last inches are still a little thin but not horrible by any means and since theyre soft and not filled with splits I dont have the heart to cut them off. They will eventually been trimmed off as well but theyre good enough to keep for now.

This has worked great for me; I have gained lenght but also improved my hemline on the way to my goal.

So, my vote goes to a third option; trim it slowly but surely- even only a centimeter off can make a huge difference sometimes :)

[divinedobbie]

Thank you for all the great advice!

I went ahead and trimmed off about 3/4" myself which didn't make me tearful and left me satisfied. I'm also trying to s&d... everyone here makes it sound so easy. Basically "separate your hair into sections and work through each one until there are no split ends left". Yeah right! I spend about an hour on one thin section of hour and the split ends are still in the hundreds when I give up. I cut four inches off my hair last year to split ends but I quickly replaced them with new split ends. I have no idea why - I use no chemicals, no dyes, and no heat.

Wildcat Diva/Islandgrrl - Something that intrigues me is that you both recommend wearing my hair up. I have been religiously wearing my hair down loose for at least two or three years (as in my hair was up maybe twice a year). My hair is too thin to create any bun that doesn't look like a timbit on top of my head, and I don't have enough hair to cover a sock bun. As for ponytails, I'm afraid of any stress scrunchies cause and honestly I don't think pulled back hair suits my face. Oh and I don't consider braids as "up", does it count? But please, I'm very curious as to why you recommend wearing hair up!?

[CurlMonster]

Wildcat Diva/Islandgrrl - Something that intrigues me is that you both recommend wearing my hair up. I have been religiously wearing my hair down loose for at least two or three years (as in my hair was up maybe twice a year). My hair is too thin to create any bun that doesn't look like a timbit on top of my head, and I don't have enough hair to cover a sock bun. As for ponytails, I'm afraid of any stress scrunchies cause and honestly I don't think pulled back hair suits my face. Oh and I don't consider braids as "up", does it count? But please, I'm very curious as to why you recommend wearing hair up!?

Wearing your hair up protects it from the environment and getting tangled. When hair is down it blows in the wind, rubs on your clothes, can get caught on things, and tangles. This all causes damage and breakage when you detangle. Wearing your hair up in a bun is ideal because it keeps your hair (particularly your fragile ends) protected from friction completely. Braids are also good for stopping your hair from tangling, but they don't protect it from friction on your clothing or chair backs, and the delicate ends are exposed in the tassle.

Maybe wearing your hair down is what has caused you to get so many split ends over the years? Especially if you detangle roughly, wearing your hair down can be very damaging. Others will probably have suggestions of other sources of your damage, but wearing your hair down may be a large part of it.

[restless]

I went to a salon and asked the hairdresser to blend my hair with my new semi-permanent extensions (which I don't recommend anyone ever gets, but that's another rant). She dutifully picked up a razor and did as I asked and it looked decent.



I spend about an hour on one thin section of hour and the split ends are still in the hundreds when I give up. I cut four inches off my hair last year to split ends but I quickly replaced them with new split ends. I have no idea why - I use no chemicals, no dyes, and no heat.

I think the bolded part in the first quote is a pretty good reason to why you might have a lot of splits. Razors are not kind to hair. How are the scissors youre using now? Sharp and only used for your hair? If not then Id suggest invesitng in a good pair (they dont necessary have to be expensive to be good).

[Selkie-]

Honestly if it were me I would trim and start afresh.

Good luck.:)

Oops -didn't see you posted that you had done a trim. Good decision. :)

[BroomHilda]

Hmm...May I suggest using a clip in ponytail while keeping your hair protected in a tiny bun or ponytail.

I do agree that updos are the best solution during longer-hair-journey.
If you find yourself "miserable" with a tiny updo, a ponytail extension is a very gentle and protective option for full-looking hair

[Theobroma]

Thank you for all the great advice!

I went ahead and trimmed off about 3/4" myself which didn't make me tearful and left me satisfied. I'm also trying to s&d... everyone here makes it sound so easy. Basically "separate your hair into sections and work through each one until there are no split ends left". Yeah right! I spend about an hour on one thin section of hour and the split ends are still in the hundreds when I give up. I cut four inches off my hair last year to split ends but I quickly replaced them with new split ends. I have no idea why - I use no chemicals, no dyes, and no heat.

As people have said, make sure your scissors are sharp! Invest in a new pair of hair scissors and don't use them on anything at all except your hair. If you're trimming or s&d'ing with poor quality scissors all you're doing is laying the groundwork for new splits to form, even if your hair is basically healthy. If you have razor damage, you won't see as much improvement immediately even with good scissors, but you should still get better results while you grow out the razored portion of your length.


Wildcat Diva/Islandgrrl - Something that intrigues me is that you both recommend wearing my hair up. I have been religiously wearing my hair down loose for at least two or three years (as in my hair was up maybe twice a year). My hair is too thin to create any bun that doesn't look like a timbit on top of my head, and I don't have enough hair to cover a sock bun. As for ponytails, I'm afraid of any stress scrunchies cause and honestly I don't think pulled back hair suits my face. Oh and I don't consider braids as "up", does it count? But please, I'm very curious as to why you recommend wearing hair up!?

Responding to the bolded bit: I'd suggest you learn the French twist! Also, you might be able to do a bigger-looking cinnabun by twisting your ponytail loosely before coiling and pinning it. You'll need more pins to pull this off, but it does work with a little practice.

Can you French braid? One thing I liked to do when my hair was shorter was a French braid with the tail tucked up against my scalp on the inside. It makes a polished-looking 'do and completely hides the length, along with any taper issues. :)

[Theobroma]

Hmm...May I suggest using a clip in ponytail while keeping your hair protected in a tiny bun or ponytail.

I do agree that updos are the best solution during longer-hair-journey.
If you find yourself "miserable" with a tiny updo, a ponytail extension is a very gentle and protective option for full-looking hair

Good idea, and there are also parandas or silk scarves etc. that you could braid or twist into your length for more volume in updos. They're also a nice, non-damaging, non-permanent way of playing around with fun colours!

[hairpleasegrow]

RegretsHerHaircut posted this lunar hair chart (thread is called Lunar Hair Chart) just thought I'd send it along in case you are interested. I plan to do a S and D on the upcoming March 19 Spring Equinox. It gives me a goal of re-evaluating my hair on certain dates, which also prevents me from cutting in between (I'm prone to getting a bit scissor happy)
https://www.morroccomethod.com/lunar-hair-care

And by the way I think you made a good decision to cut a little bit off. I recently had to cut off 7 inches. I understand your pain :) Try and put it up and forget about it...it will grow before you know it (that's what I keep telling myself at least)

[hairpleasegrow]

Sorry correction... it was RegretsHerCut that posted the lunar chart originally :) ^

[Tini'sNewHair]

Felxi8 clips are also good for updos - I used them when my hair was shorter because i couldnt do braids or buns with anything else.

[joflakes]

Well, if I were in your situation I'd cut until I was happy (whether that was 3/4" or more). I am slowly trimming off damage from my hair with a combination of salon visits and S&D when I see splits and white dots. Good luck on your journey!

[Stiria]

I hope your ends feel better after your trim. As for updos I second the tucked french braid, and french twist. You say pulled back hair dosn't suit your face, have you tried braiding the sides? If you make a french braid on both sides of Your head it will add some interest to the front. You can always join the braids at you nape.

[divinedobbie]

I think the bolded part in the first quote is a pretty good reason to why you might have a lot of splits. Razors are not kind to hair. How are the scissors youre using now? Sharp and only used for your hair? If not then Id suggest invesitng in a good pair (they dont necessary have to be expensive to be good).

The scissors I am using are ones I have "permanently borrowed" from my mom's old hairdressing set. They are at least a decade old though so I will definitely look into a new investment!

Lots of good ideas here. I reconsidered cutting another inch off today since the ends still looked thin but after all these suggestions of ways to put my hair up, I think I'll keep the length. I've never really used any "hair toys" as I've seen them being called on here. I will see if I can find anything useful to put my hair up with , especially Felxi8 clips and where I can get them. It's hard to get anything in my town though :hmm:

The easiest at this point will probably be the tucked french braid - as soon as I learn how to french braid :lol:

[leslissocool]

If I were you, I'd cut to APL since it's damaged (with good scissors) and let it grow again. It would thicken most of your hair IMO.

[lapushka]

It looks like it's nicely fairytaled. It doesn't look bad to me! I'd let it grow if you have damage-free ends (no splits, no white dots from heat damage). If you do have damage, I'd trim. Look into Feye's self-trimming method for that. It's an easy do-it-yourself method of trimming.
http://feyeselftrim.livejournal.com/

[divinedobbie]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/77825012@N04/12078160496/

Well this is my first time inserting a photo into a post so hopefully that works ^^. After the initial 3/4" inch I cut, I trimmed another 3/4". If you compare the two photos, you can see (or maybe you can't see because it's very hard to see) that before, the ends went to the fourth stripe down my shirt and now they just barely touch the second line.

Also I'm pretty sure I'm having a protein overload because my ends are snapping off so I'm headed off to the grocery store for some aloe vera and molasses to try this "SMT" that I'm seeing raves about. :D

ETA: I don't think it worked. :-( here is a link to the "after" photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/77825012@N04/12078160496/

[duchess67]

I can absolutely see the difference in your hair after the trim, it looks so much better. If you are aiming for length micro trimming is the best way to go and thicken up the ends. I learned all about it after joining LHC :)

[spidermom]

My opinion - you need a trim.

Here is a very easy way to get an even result. Divide your hair down the middle as though you were making pigtails. Comb both sides very smoothly and evenly forward and combine them to make one ponytail under your chin. Now comb the ponytail straight down. Take first and middle finger of your nondominant hand and pinch the ponytail between them. Slide your fingers down, keeping them level. Cut the ends off straight across at the bottom with sharp scissors in your dominant hand. You can cut as little or as much as you want. I'd start with a little bit, only the very longest hairs. Then remove ponytail, comb out and check. Repeat as needed.

Every little bit will help. Cut it once a month or every other month until you like the ends.

[spidermom]

PS: Just saw the after picture. Better.

[ErinLeigh]

The trim looks good. Since you stated you like to wear down i think it was the best choice.

I get snapping and breaking if my hair is thinned out no matter how good of condition it is in since the strands are so much more vulnerable in lesser bulk, at least on me personally. And if I am breaking, I am not growing and it gets frustrating. You can dust the tips monthly and let the rest catch up..or if your going to start experimenting with updos go longer and then have a pleasant surprise of growth every few months to assess and decide with. I know cutting hair is hard but it looks a lot cleaner now and will fill in easier.

[CurlMonster]

I think your hair actually looks LONGER after the cut than it did before! Amazing how a trim can sometimes do that. :) It looks like what you have now will be a great starting point to grow from!

[Theobroma]

I don't think it worked. :-( here is a link to the "after" photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/77825012@N04/12078160496/

Very nice! I agree that it almost looks longer now than on the "before" pictures.

[Anje]

I think it looks better.

Is it as thick at the ends as it is at the nape of your neck? No. But it's thicker and doesn't look nearly as wispy now, and you have fresh non-tangly non-split ends now to grow from, along with most of your length.

Next step: Start wearing your hair up with the ends tucked in. I'd recommend buns that aren't held by an elastic, but tucked braids are great too. Even normal braids, brought over your shoulder whenever you sit down so that you don't lean against the ends will be a considerable improvement in protecting your hair and helping it to grow longer. Once you start preserving your ends, I think you'll find that your hair grows faster than you thought.

[Madora]

Personally, I'd trim it a little and then concentrate on growing. However, if you have a lot of damage/splits, then I'd do a trim of at least 4 inches and take it from there. It seems you're be working at cross purposes growing out damaged hair to any great length...only to have to chop it off because it looked unappealing. Better to begin with a decent cut. It's also easier to keep an eye on one length as far as trimming or S and Ding.

Lastly, promise that you'll never, ever, let anyone get near your hair with a razor, for God's sake. If you need a cut/trim, do it with sharp shears.

[cat11]

Your trim looks good, it seriously made a huge difference to how thick your hair looks!! It makes a huge difference to not have the wispy taper. I Think you should keep on growing it but still get regular trims so you can let the rest of your hair slowly catch up with your ends and it'll get thicker like everyone said :) The ends would thicken up even quicker if you just tried to maintain it at that length for awhile, trimming back wispy hairs as they grow to thicken it up and get it looking nice again. I think I saw that method on beyondclassiclength.com, too :)

[Isilme]

You can get Flexis at flexi8.com or at Lillarose.biz. They are really great, and come in many sizes. I think you should stop cutting for awhile now so you can practice some updos :) Wearing hair down always led to splits and breakage for me, even braids do if I use them too much.

[QMacrocarpa]

In answer to the question about updo's-- depending on hairtype, wearing hair up can be essential to growing long. It is for me. When I wore my hair down constantly in my teens I hit a false-terminal length around BSL. My hair would just get so damaged at the ends that it would break off as fast as it grew. And this with no heat-styling or coloring. My hair is just on the fragile side. Now, with updo's keeping my hair protected and pretty much tangle-free most of the time, my hair is longer and my ends are not the split-tastic things they used to be, even though I never do any S&D (hair is nice, but my sanity is precious to me). I'll never be split-free, but the splits are at a low level that I can keep in check with self-trims a couple times per year.

It can take some time to get used to any new style, so if you want to work some updo's into your routine, I suggest trying them out a bit at home first, so you don't feel too self-conscious about the new look.

I like the French twist and tucked French braid suggestions, and I'll add that an octopus clip can make a really handy bun-cage, giving your ends terrific protection.

[veryhairyfairy]

QMacrocarpa gave some great advice.
I would add that when I was your length and starting to wear my hair up, medium sized and large claw clips were my best friends! My go-to 'style' when my hair is shorter than BSL has always been to gather my hair in a ponytail (but don't secure it with an elastic), twist it gently and clip it until it stays in place.
It can take some practice to find a way of arranging the hair so that clips can hold it, but wearing your hair up is really essential if you have anything less than super-strong, super-healthy hair.
I wish you luck on your journey! It takes patience and time, but it's worth it. :)

[Agnes Hannah]

Hi everyone here has given you some really good advice that I can't really add to except that I condish twice after washing and before I put on oil or serum. I also dry using an old tee shirt and air dry when it is damp. I use a silk sleepcap and a silk pillow case to protect the ends as much as I can. Finally, I also wear it up everyday, my goto is a claw, and these can be covered in silk or soft fabric, and more recently a LWB. All these things have improved the condition of my very fine 2" circumference hair. My splits are almost non existant, and I am going to check it for a trim, S&D on the spring equinox. Until then I am leaving well alone. I am aiming for waist and will maintain for a short time when I get there, then I am planning on TB. Good luck